Heartbeat, Heartbreak
by Azure Emperor
Summary: PSII: Two couples celebrate Valentine's Day in their own unique ways. Chapter 1 is innocent, Chapter 2... not so much.
1. Hugh and Shir: Dinner Special!

Happy (late!) Valentine's Day to all the Phans!

(February 14, AW 1286- Piata Academy)

_She was right. Damn right._

With a sigh, a young purple-haired man looked at one of the framed photos on his desk; himself arm-in-arm with a beautiful redheaded woman. _It feels like it was so long ago,_ he thought as he set the photo back down. _You were right, Amy. I dwell on my past too much._

His comrade in arms against Mother Brain, Amy Sage: Beautiful. Brilliant. Innocent. They were engaged to be married at one point; she realized he still dwelled on a past love, returning his ring with tears in her eyes. "I hoped things would have worked out," she told him, barely able to look him in the eyes. "I'm sorry, Hugh."

The job offer to teach biology at the esteemed Science Academy of Piata hadn't come quickly enough for him: His colleagues wished him well, and Amy had been there to see him off, but the pain and awkwardness of a recently-ended relationship still lingered between them.

On the plus side, he rationalized, the move to Piata did him good. With some pride, he looked at the new nameplate on his desk, holding the laser-etched prism to the light in order to scatter it into rainbows: _HUGH THOMPSON, Professor of BIOLOGY_ looked back at him, the white etchings blending into reds, blues, and greens.

_Sounds like two women I know,_ he thought with a chuckle. _Amy, with her red hair and blue eyes, and blue-eyed, green-haired-_

"Huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuugh."

The voice was the other woman he was thinking about, her voice light and childish, seemingly like the wind she claimed to worship.

"Shir?" he asked, his voice a bit louder than he intended. "Where the devil are you?"

"You know where! Look outside! XD"

Confused, Hugh span around in his chair, coming face to face with Shir. She was perched outside his office, her hands on the window's glass as she leaned against the building. Calmly, he walked over to the window, opening it to let the green-haired woman tumble through into the office.

"Hello, Shir," Hugh said as he closed the window. "Most people usually use the academic building's front door to visit."

"Yeah, well, I'm not 'most people,'" Shir replied. "Anyway, I brought you something cool!"

"...Cool."

"Mm-hmm! Take a gander at these, Hugh!"

Shir produced a large fabric bag (_Where, God only knows,_ Hugh thought) and reached into it, humming to herself. "Oh, where is it... ah! Here we go!" she said after a few seconds. She stood straight, pulling a flower pot out of the bag. "You'll love this!"

"Thanks, Shir," Hugh replied, taking the flower pot. "What is it?"

"It's a potted 1up Mushroom, silly!"

Sweatdropping, Hugh set the pot on his desk. "Is it now? Shir, I think you've played too many video games..."

"Naaah, just kidding. It's a premature tulip, set to blossom in a few months, provided someone takes good care of it! And since you're the only one I know who isn't a black thumb when it comes to this, I thought, 'Heeey, Hugh can give this mini-tulip bush some TLC!'" Grinning, Shir crossed her arms across her chest and continued, "So I ran literally straight up your wall, and, well, here we are."

"Well, Shir, thank you very much," Hugh replied. "I'll try my best with it-"

"Also! I got you some dinner! Tasty dinner, gooble gobble!"

Reaching again into the bag, Shir took out a foil-wrapped dish. "And do you know what the best part is, Hugh?" she asked as she set it in front of his chair. "It's homemade."

"Homemade what, Shir?"

"Lift the foil and find out, silly. =p"

Curious as to what Shir had made, Hugh lifted the foil from the plate, smiling at the scent and sight that awaited him. "Oh! It's... wow. That's a lot of roast beef, Shir," he said, looking at the large pile of meat.

"And some nice onion soup/Worces... Woreches... _sauce_ that I can't pronounce," Shir continued, setting a small container of brown liquid next to the roast beef slices. "And! Some rolls, too! Mmm kaiser rolls. Some mashed potatoes are in the smaller bag-"

"Shir, I'm flattered, but that's a lot of food for one person-"

"Well, there's two of us here."

"You sure you wouldn't want to share some with Rolf?" Hugh asked.

"Naaah, he's busy tonight. You didn't hear, did you?"

Shaking his head, Hugh asked, "Hear about what?"

"Well, Rolf and I tried the whole 'we've been friends since we were ten, let's try the dating thing,' and it worked, for a few months, but we realized something."

"What was that, Shir?"

With a sigh that sounded regretful, Shir continued, "We kinda didn't work as a couple. It sounds cliche and all that cheesy teen romance movie crap, Hugh, but Rolf and I thought it'd be better if we stayed best friends forever and ever instead."

"Hmm." Closing his eyes, Hugh thought again of Amy, noting that amongst the group of seven, there was another couple that had broken apart. Unlike himself and Amy, at least Rolf and Shir seemed to still be social and remain friendly towards each other. "I'm sorry it didn't work out between you two."

"Naaah, the whole friends thing is better anyway. We can go whine to each other about significant others if we need two, plus we don't have to worry about that whole post-sexual awkwardness anymore! XD"

"Shir, what the hell!" Hugh stammered. "I didn't need to know that much about you two!"

"Well, gee, Hugh, it... kinda _does_ happen, you know?" Shir asked. "You're a biologist, you of all people _should_ know that! When two people are in love-"

"Shir, I know about sex. I've seen it among fourteen species, from Palmans to locustas to center worms. It's..." Hugh took a deep breath, pausing, as he told Shir, "It hadn't happened between Amy and myself."

"You mean, all the time you were dating and engaged, you and Amy never..." Shir's jaw dropped. After a second of stunned silence, she continued, "Wow. That, uh... that sucks, dude."

Hugh shrugged. "I wouldn't know. I suppose it was something to do with Amy's upbringing- she wanted her first time to be special, she always said."

"God, are you still talking about Amy? It's been, what? Five months?" Shir asked, looking at Hugh's picture. "Hugh, it's not really healthy to keep bringing up old loves like that."

"I know, but she was a significant part of my life, brief as our romance and engagement were."

"Yeah, but you gotta move on, right?" Shir continued. "You got over Rita, right?"

"Eventually, or so I thought."

"Well, you'll get over Amy!" Leaping onto the desk and taking care not to knock anything over, Shir continued, "Soon enough you'll be the bland, vanilla, personality of tapioca Hugh Thompson we all know and lov- err, acknowledge!" She pointed at Hugh's nose as she winked.

"Tapioca? I think I'm a little more interesting than that."

"And that's your first step!" Leaping off the desk, Shir continued, "Now, how can we help you get over Amy?"

"Well, there's the picture I have of her-"

Shir took the picture out of the frame, ripped it in half, and gave one of the halves to the purple-haired man. "See? There you go! Out of your mind already!" Shir said with a grin.

"...Now people are going to ask, 'Hugh, whose hand is that on your shoulder?'"

"I dunno! Make something up! Tell them it's the Unlawful Invisible, or the Hash-Slinging Slasher, or Inna-Godda-DaChainsaw. You'll get cool points for having people think, 'Heey, he's hanging out with a serial killer and making him look human!' So, what's next?"

Hugh thought for a second. "My FacePlace profile says-"

"In a relationship with [BLOCKED], and by '[BLOCKED]' I mean 'Amy,' I know. You should change that, Hugh!"

"Sometime."

"No, you get your visiphone and you do it now!" Shir reached into Hugh's pocket for his phone. "Or I'll do it and chunk that stupid FarmCity of yours! XD"

The threat, empty as it may have been, to Hugh's virtual farm spurred him to immediate action. "I'll do it, Shir!" he shouted, drawing his phone with lightning speed. "Options, relationships... done. See, Shir? 'Hugh Thompson is now single. /3' It's even got the broken heart and everything. No need to threaten my rutabagas."

"What would you do without me, Hugh?" Shir laughed. "Now then... anything else I can do to get rid of the ghosts of fiancee's past?"

"Nothing I can think of. I mean, there's some gifts Amy gave me, but-"

"Say no more! I can have Daddy's private army break into your apartment, and sell them back to Amy piece by piece! Or I can go call Rudo and Anna and have them tag-team yell at Amy for breaking your heart until they both pass out, or-"

"They'd never do that," Hugh interrupted. He set his phone back on his desk, then asked, "Did it hurt?"

"Did what hurt?" Shir asked, taking a small slice of the roast beef from the plate.

"You and Rolf, when you two stopped seeing each other."

"A little, yeah," Shir replied. "But let's be fair, (munch munch) it should. That means that you both gave a damn about the relationship, and wanted to see it through."

"Like Amy and myself."

"Or like me and Rolf, yeah. It hurts, Hugh." With a weak smile, she added, "But only for a little bit."

"I... I see. I remember being like that when Rita left me, too." His turn to smile, this time. "You know the feeling, Shir. You think you're going to be together with someone forever."

"And that you're gonna get married someday," Shir added.

"But instead, you're left with nothing but memories. And that's what hurts, Shir. It's like you're missing part of your body."

"But that's the funny thing about life, Hugh!" Taking more meat from the plate, Shir swallowed it after some hasty chewing, then continued, "Sometimes you'll find someone who can at least make it feel better."

"That'd be good."

"Hugh."

"Hm?"

Rolling her eyes, Shir said, "Look at your dinner, Hugh."

Hugh looked down at the big plate of roast beef, confused. "You took a few slices of it, Shir. That's fine."

"No, silly! Look at it!"

It took him a couple of seconds to piece it together, but the realization hit Hugh: The roast beef slices had been arranged on the plate in the shape of a heart- a heart that practically oozed with French onion soup and Worcestershire sauce, but a heart nonetheless. Blushing, Hugh asked, "Shir, what is this, really?"

"Roast beef with sauce, silly! I thought we could, you know. Have dinner together."

"Well, dinner's nice, but-"

"Sssh." Shir placed a finger to Hugh's lips, setting herself carefully on the desk. "A nice, quiet dinner together. Just us. No regrets, no anxieties about the past."

"Mmrph."

"And maybe, Hugh-" She slid off the desk, landing in Hugh's lap. Shir stretched her legs, keeping them from falling backwards as she pulled herself to Hugh. "Maybe after dinner, well, maybe we can just do something like..."

She closed her eyes, then tilted her head forward, bringing her lips to meet Hugh's. He balked at first, memories of kisses with Rita and Amy coming to mind, then slowly allowed himself to relax, recalling Shir's words: _Don't dwell on it. No regrets, no anxieties._

He could feel the tip of Shir's tongue playing at his lips for a moment before she pulled away. "Well?" she asked, grinning, her blue eyes sparkling with mischief and delight.

"You taste like roast beef, Shir."

"Well, duh. Silly Hugh."

"I didn't mind, though. Thanks."

"No problem!" Springboarding herself over the desk, Shir asked, "So! We still on for dinner tonight?"

"Sure."

Hugh watched Shir pull a chair up to the desk, then asked, "So, what is it about me, anyway, Shir?"

"You've got Meseta. Purely monetary, Hugh. Once it's transferred to my super-secret Dezolian accounts, I'm outta here like the wind. XD" She laughed, then gave Hugh a warm smile. "What can I say? Sometimes I like the quiet type. Someone who listens."

"Hmm. I'll be honest, Shir, I did think my life was lacking a bit of... excitement. I think you're an exciting person."

"You bet I am!"

"Perhaps we can see each other again like this?"

With a small blush, Shir asked, "You mean like, actual date date, Hugh? Or just break into your office and bother you?"

"Either way. I don't mind, Shir- my door's always open."

"Hey now!" Shir pulled two wine glasses out of the fabric bag, setting them on the desk between them. "What did I say before, Hugh? Doors are for ordinary people! _"

Hugh chuckled, watching Shir take a bottle of wine from the bag. "And you're no ordinary person, Shilka Gold. Never forget that."

"And you're more of a charmer than people think, Hugh Thompson. Never forget that."

With a grunt, Shir opened the wine bottle, pouring some for each of them. "To Valentine's Day, Hugh," she said.

"To Valentine's Day, Shir."

The glasses clinked together, and as they started eating their dinner, both Hugh and Shir couldn't help but think the same thought- _You're wonderful._

_The Other Chapter: Rolf and Amy have a Valentine's Day of their own._


	2. Rolf and Amy: Valentine's Surprise

The other half of Heartbeat, Heartbreak; this one about Rolf and Amy.

(February 14, AW 1286- Paseo)

"Hey, Rolf!"

Looking up from his desk, Rolf noticed a small group of fellow Agents headed out of Central Tower's Investigative Department. The speaker, a tall scruffy-looking man, continued, "Rolf, we're headin' out to the bars to celebrate! Wanna come with us?"

"Celebrate?" Rolf asked. "What for?"

"It's V-Day, Rolf!" The Agent laughed. "Don't you have someone to spend it with?"

Rolf blanched, tensing slightly at the Agent's remark. "Well, I've got friends, but no gir-"

"So come on and join us, Rolf! You can go get drunk, and maybe pick up a girl while we're pubcrawling!"

"I've always wanted to see Eushys drunk," another Agent, this one a blue-haired female, commented, smirking at Rolf.

"Shelly, I don't plan on getting drunk. Not like Robinson here. Remember what happened last year?"

"Hey! Rolf, I'm telling ya, that bar trashed itself!" The tall Agent laughed again. "C'mon, come with us. You might enjoy yourself!"

"Well, Rob, I-"

Rolf was interrupted by a gentle _ka-ling!_ coming from his visiphone. With a sigh, he told Robinson, "Hang on a second."

"Go ahead, answer your phone, Rolf. That might be your Valentine's Day savior."

"Hmm. I wish _I_ could be Eushys's V-Day savior," Shelly said. "Rolf, please, save me from Robinson and O'Connor and Day."

"Shelly, we dated like, three times when I was seventeen."

"And I remember the kisses well, Rolf Eushys. ^_^"

Ignoring Shelly, Rolf looked at the phone's screen. "Text message," he muttered.

"Well? Answer it, man! This could be the best day of the year for you!"

"All right, all right, guys." Rolf tapped a key on the phone to display the message; noticing Robinson leaning over his desk, Rolf leaned back, tucking the phone close to his chest. "Privacy, Rob?"

"Oh, yeah. Sorry."

_Today_

_From: Amy_

_To: Me_

_Rolf, are you busy tonight? If not, may I come over? I don't want to spend Valentine's Day alone._

_~Amy_

Rolf raised an eyebrow at the text message; he and Amy had dinner a few times over the past few months, but he hadn't thought anything about it.

"So, who's this Amy?" Robinson asked.

"You know her. The doctor from Oputa... don't you dare. Don't you dare say anything, Robinson!" Rolf replied, his voice becoming a nervous shout. "She's just a friend, that's all!"

"Yeah, a friend with E-cups! Sounds like you've got a date for Valentine's Day, Rolf!"

"Rob, she's not a date, really."

"Eushys, if you were having a woman come over to your house for Valentine's Day, you should have told us from the beginning!" Shelly teased.

His face turning red, Rolf tried his best to ignore the catcalls and teasing of the Agents, concentrating on his visiphone. He typed out a quick reply, then waited for a few seconds for another message.

"Hey, Rolf, we're gonna head on out now," Robinson told him. "Have fun tonight!"

"You guys too, all right?"

The Agents left, leaving Rolf at his desk, pondering their words. _Just a friend,_ he thought. _I've been there for you after you and Hugh split up, Amy. You're a great frien-_

The phone beeped again, letting Rolf read the message on screen: "_Thanks. I'll be over in about an hour._"

Nodding as if she were there, Rolf stood up. _Looks like I'm making dinner, then._ He tapped a few numbers into the phone, then listened as it rang. _Pick up. Pick up..._ "Hello? ...Yes, yes. I'd like to order a delivery..."

[][][]

She had seen him quite a few times over the past two years, but Amy never could get used to seeing Rolf without his armor. Somehow, the idea of Rolf Eushys, Private Citizen seemed to be one she could never reconcile with Rolf Eushys, Agent of the Motavian Security Administration. It didn't matter to her, though- Rolf was Rolf, no matter what he wore. The blue-haired man had acted as an emotional anchor for Amy, letting her cry on his shoulders whenever the subject of Hugh, their engagement, and subsequent breakup had come up. They had embraced several times, and she had to admit, Amy enjoyed the feeling of at least _being held_ by someone.

But Amy was confused, wondering about Rolf: Was he doing this for her just to be a friend, or was there something more? She did feel something similar to what she had with Hugh, but she wasn't sure just how to react to those feelings. _Best not to worry about it too much,_ she decided. _You made a promise about this tonight, and you're going to honor it. Even if Hugh isn't here._

Taking a deep, reserved breath, she adjusted the white bag she clutched in her hand, then knocked on the door. It opened after a second, and on the other side, Rolf stepped back to allow Amy inside. "Oh, hey, Amy. C'mon in."

"Thanks, Rolf. How are you today?"

Rolf shrugged. "Fine, I guess. Desk duty's boring as hell, same as always."

"It is, but paperwork does have to be done from time to time. How's Shir?"

"Shir's Shir. Here. Let me get your cape."

Amy relaxed, letting Rolf take the white cape she usually wore from her shoulders. As he hung it carefully in his closet, he asked, "What's in the bag?"

"Oh, it's..." Amy paused, glancing down nervously at the bag, before she said, "A bottle of wine. And something else, but... that can wait a while."

"Wine?" Rolf asked, surprised. "You drink?"

"It's a special occasion, Rolf- even though we're both unattached, we can still at least have some wine with dinner." Amy gave a quick sniff, then smiled. "Is that shrimp? And noodles, too, Rolf?"

"Mmhmm. Fried rice, too- I think I got all your favorites," Rolf replied. He gestured to the two plates on his kitchen table- one laden with shrimp, noodles and rice; the other bore small pieces of beef and broccoli with rice. "I'll go get the corkscrew, Amy. Please, have a seat."

Rolf pulled a chair out for Amy, who blushed as she sat down before the plate of Chinese food in front of her. _Rolf's always been nice like this,_ she thought. _Not like Hugh. Hugh was nice, but Rolf __respects__ me._

After a few seconds, Rolf returned, corkscrew in hand. "The kitchen's a mess, Amy," he explained. "It was kinda tucked away in a drawer."

"Good thing Shir didn't wind up 'borrowing' it," Amy joked, giving a smile.

"She might have at one point. We don't know," Rolf replied. He struggled with the corkscrew and the wine bottle for a few seconds, then poured some wine for the redhead. "How are you?" he asked. "Work treating you all right?"

"It is, thank you, Rolf. Not too busy, happily, but without Mother Brain, people are taking more risks with their lives. I suppose either way, that's a good thing."

"It is, but nobody really wants to hurt themselves," Rolf replied, pouring some wine for himself. "You holding up all right? If you don't want to talk about it-"

"No, I don't mind." Amy took a sip from her wine glass; Rolf blushed at the usual subtle grace and calmness of her movement. "Everyone at work keeps telling me that it wasn't meant to be between Hugh and I. And some of them think that I could have done much better than him. But I _loved_ him, despite his quirks. Seeing him constantly wonder what his life would have been like with Rita, after he proposed to me... it was insulting."

"I can only imagine."

"I should have thought something was wrong when he started confusing my favorite things with hers," Amy added. Seeing the troubled expression on Rolf's face, she then said, "I... I'm sorry, Rolf. I just-"

"No, Amy, I don't mind," Rolf pleaded. "If you still want to talk about it..."

"A little bit. Rolf, I really thought that Hugh and I were going to spend tonight together. But instead-"

The tears started to flow from Amy's eyes. Calmly, Rolf rose from the table, walking around it to be by Amy. "Oh, God, Amy, I'm sorry. I-"

"*sniff* I'm fine, Rolf. Thanks for your concern, though." She gave him another smile; one Rolf found beautiful despite Amy's tears. He hesitated for a second while the doctor composed herself before returning to his chair.

The rest of their dinner passed with the chatter of two friends catching up with each other. "You're still all right with just being Shir's friend?" Amy asked as she finished the last of the noodles on her plate.

"Yeah. It's... it's what I was expecting to happen, in all honesty," Rolf replied. He speared the last piece of his dinner, then continued, "It was nice to date Shir and all, but it's a lot better to be friends. She's a bit of a handful at times."

"Of course." Pushing her empty plate away, Amy stood up. "Rolf, thank you again for dinner. It was wonderful. You didn't have to do this-"

"I don't mind, Amy," Rolf replied, taking the empty plates from the table. "Really. You wanted to come over, so I thought I'd surprise you."

"It's sweet of you." Once Rolf turned around, Amy blushed. _He's gentlemanly..._ she thought, her eyes drifting from Rolf's back to the white bag in the living room. "Rolf?" she asked.

"Yes?"

"Do you mind if I freshened up? The noodles were a little messy."

"Of course. The hall bathroom's out of commission, ever since Kain was over last week. There's one attached to the bedroom, though. Feel free to use that one."

"Oh! Thank you, Rolf!"

She waited a few seconds, listening for the sounds of Rolf starting to wash their dishes, before taking the large bag from the living room. As she headed through Rolf's house, Amy sighed, her blush returning. _I promised Anna and Shir that this was going to be for Valentine's Day,_ she thought as she looked into the bag. _It's not for Hugh anymore, but that doesn't matter anymore. This surprise is for someone truly wonderful- no, not just wonderful. Someone who can only be the worthiest man in Algo._

_This is for you, Rolf._

[][][]

The dishwasher was running, the leftovers from dinner were sitting on a shelf in Rolf's fridge, and the two chairs had been tucked back under the kitchen table. Rolf sat down on the living room couch, waiting patiently for Amy, flipping through a TV listing.

_She's been in there for about fifteen minutes,_ he thought. _I hope she's not crying in there..._

He flipped through the listings, trying to find a movie that Amy might like. After about two minutes, he sighed, then set the listing down on the couch. _I should go check on her,_ he decided. He walked down the hallway into his house, passing his bathroom- _I should go call a plumber for that-_ stopping at his bedroom door. _Weird. I never keep it closed._ "Amy?" he asked, trying to call to her through the door. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine, Rolf..."

Rolf started to call to her again, but paused. Something to him seemed off. _Amy sounded like she was right behind the door,_ he considered. _There's no way she could have heard me if she were in the bathroom..._ Confused, he opened the door, stepping into his bedroom. He made it only two steps in before pausing in complete surprise at what awaited him.

Amy's back was turned to him, her yellow dress and boots abandoned in favor of clothing Rolf never would have considered the redhead to ever wear: High heels, stockings rising to her thighs, held up by a garter belt, panties, and the back strap of a bra, all powder pink. The shapes of roses could be seen in the lacy cuffs of the stockings, stretched tight against the doctor's legs.

"A... Ah... Amy?" Rolf stammered, taken aback by Amy's sudden change of attire.

Calmly, Amy turned around, facing Rolf. She clutched a satin fan in her right hand, holding it in front of her face, leaving her eyes the only visible part of her face. Amy gave the agent a wink, then whipped the fan to her side with a flourish. "Well, hel-_lo,_ Rolf Eushys," she said, her voice a seductive whisper.

Amy's back was surprising enough as it was; Rolf didn't think his heart could take a view of Amy's front: The doctor's entire midriff was bare, revealing an amethyst hanging from a small charm in her navel. His mind and eyes wandered quickly from each of her pink-painted nails, then to her cleavage, then her lips, a seductive smile accented with shiny red lipstick.

"I.. uh... Amy, I... uh..." was the only articulate thing Rolf could manage to say.

"So, what do you think?" Amy breathed, taking a step towards Rolf.

_Oh God, oh God, what do I say? WHAT DO I SAY!_ "Uhh... you're..." He struggled for a moment before saying, "You're _beautiful!_"

"Oh? Just 'beautiful?'" Amy teased. "I'm glad you think that, Rolf. Surprised?"

"Well, yeah! It's... it's not every day I see one of my friends in lingerie and lipstick, Amy!" Rolf was fighting a nosebleed, trying to urge himself to remain calm. "I mean... Amy, I'm... you look _great_ and all, but- I don't know what to say!"

"Well, take all the time you need, then."

"Look, Amy, really. This is... what's this about?"

"Rolf, this was supposed to be a surprise. For someone I thought deserving..." Amy took another step towards Rolf, this one less confident. "I wanted to surprise someone _special_ on Valentine's Day. When Hugh and I split up, I was crushed. I've never felt so down like that. But then you asked to spend some time with me. You..." Her voice broke, and she started to cry again. "Rolf, you were like a knight to me, offering a hand like a ray of light."

"Amy... I..."

"You made me happy, all this time, Rolf. It sounds like every bad romance novel I've ever read, but..." She looked up, and Rolf swore he could see a sparkle in Amy's blue eyes. "Rolf, you were my knight. I thought you'd like this... I've thought about you these past five months."

Rolf was stunned. It was true, at times he'd had feelings for the redhead, but he'd always considered them thoughts of admiration and respect for a friend. He slipped his arms around Amy's waist, surprised at the softness of her skin. "Amy, I... I'm happy to be of help."

He could feel Amy's arms around him, pulling each other close. "You were more than a help, Rolf," she whispered. "More than you'd think."

"Amy, this moment, these feelings... these are here because of you. Your healing abilities, your care for all of us..." He clutched the doctor tighter to him. "None of it would be here if you hadn't kept us all alive. If you hadn't kept me alive when we fought Mother Brain-"

"No, Rolf. Don't say that. I don't want to think of an Algo without you."

Rolf hesitated, only for an instant, before bringing his lips to meet Amy's. Their eyes closed, as if they had mutually expected this kiss, this very moment. Neither of them uttered a word, only sighing in content as Rolf's tongue started prodding Amy's lips, as if asking for permission. She conceded with barely a hint of resistance, and her own tongue started to dance around Rolf's. Rolf's arms tightened around her, and his hands started wandering up her bare back, caressing her shoulders, running down the sides of her torso, and he found himself rewarded with a delighted murmur.

He pulled away from her, her lips parted slightly, as they looked at each other. Both of them were blushing, their arms still entwined around each other. Realization struck both the agent and the doctor at that moment, and their kissing renewed with a newly-found passion. Amy was scarcely aware of Rolf lifting her up, supporting her weight; movement; the feeling of Rolf's bed at her back. Her heart started racing as she felt Rolf's weight around her on the bed, then his hands rubbing her stocking-clad legs.

She took his hands into hers, gently lifting them away from her legs, then bringing them to her lips. "Rolf," she whispered. "Is that a box of chocolates on your end table?"

"Yeah... it was a gift from work. Did you want one?"

"Bring the whole box over, Rolf..."

Rolf leaned to his side, grabbing the box, then handed it to Amy. Opening the box, Amy took a small piece of chocolate, then set it into her navel, next to the piercing. Rolf looked confused at first, then he realized what Amy intended when she lied back down, putting more of the chocolate pieces on her stomach, followed by one between her breasts. She gave Rolf a seductive smile as she popped one last piece into her mouth. The blue-haired agent smirked, then launched himself at Amy's navel, bringing his lips to her soft skin as he sucked the chocolate piece up. Amy giggled at the sudden sensation, then continued to do so as Rolf made his way up her midriff, expertly removing the chocolates with his mouth. He paused for a few seconds, just enough to finish eating enough of the chocolate so he wouldn't choke, then made his move for the next piece.

Once the chocolate was in Rolf's mouth, Amy gently pushed his head into her cleavage, and the agent remained there as he tugged at the straps of Amy's bra. She lifted her shoulders enough for him to slip the shoulder straps down her arms, then she felt his hands at her back, undoing the last strap that held the bra in place. He worked at it for some seconds, and once Rolf had finally managed to unhook it, he casually cast the offending undergarment aside. Amy only smiled, replying to Rolf's forwardness by slipping her hands beneath his shirt, yanking it above his head and tossing it to a corner of the room.

He pressed his body to Amy's, bringing her into a kiss that tasted of chocolate. Unbidden by Rolf, Amy slid the piece of chocolate she claimed into Rolf's mouth, who waited before transferring it back into Amy's mouth. The two passed the chocolate kiss back and forth before it finally melted, and they swallowed the melted candy. Rolf broke his kiss with Amy, bringing his lips to her neck, then to her chest in a series of kisses, before reaching her breasts. He set a candy on her nipple, then placed his mouth over it, sucking and licking.

Amy moaned softly as her nipple stiffened in Rolf's mouth; he placed the last piece of chocolate from the box on her other nipple, then started again. Her hands rubbed up and down his back and shoulders as he worked his magic; his hands grasped for the snaps holding Amy's garter belt in place. Gently, he undid the twin snaps, then as Amy's other nipple reached its peak, she lifted her bottom a couple of inches, then her legs; enough to slide the garter belt free to join the rest of their clothes. Amy's lips met Rolf's neck and chest as she sat up in the bed, her hands working to remove the jeans Rolf was wearing. Once she had relieved him of the jeans, Rolf's hands traveled her body, finding their way beneath Amy's panties, searching for a moment before finding her moist recess.

Amy took a sharp breath, then gave way to gentle moans as Rolf's fingers danced within her, her hips aiding in each movement. Her own hands reached for Rolf's waist, removing the last of his clothes as he pressed within. With a sudden movement, Rolf removed his hands from Amy, slipping them into her panties, then removed them with a tug. Her stockings followed within seconds.

The two were now naked and unashamed as the days they were born. Both Rolf and Amy gazed into each others' eyes, letting the eye contact linger, before Amy finally gasped, "Rolf... you're my first."

"I'll be gentle, then," he replied, kissing Amy's neck.

His arms slipped beneath her shoulders, and soon Rolf brought himself into Amy. She embraced Rolf, brushing his back with her nails as they started moving against each other, her legs sliding around Rolf's, their pleasure increasing with each motion, with each gasping breath.

Amy's breathing quickly became hastily-moaned cries and prayers for Rolf and God. They could feel themselves slowly building up towards their own personal Nirvana.

"Oh, God, Rolf... oh, God! Oh, God!"

Rolf's arms suddenly tightened, clutching Amy closely to him as they went into one final thrust, all sensation save for each other lost as they became one.

It was as if Destiny had created this perfect moment just for them. For once in Rolf Eushys's and Amy Sage's lives, there was no tension. The anxieties and fears that had built up over the last two years had melted away, their touch a panacea to each others' problems.

There was no workplace stress, no fear of the future, no worries about life. Their universe was solely a young man and a young woman, united in their passion.

[][][]

"Rolf?"

The blue-haired man next to her in the bed stirred, turning to her. "Amy, it's... it's four in the morning," he whispered, his slight irritation disappearing as Amy slipped an arm around him, her ruby-red lips curled into an angelic smile that seemed to be just for him.

"I love you."

His eyes opened, and he looked at his red-haired bedmate. A smile crept across his face as he replied, "I love you, Amy."

"I don't want this moment to end. I don't want this to end."

"It doesn't have to, Amy," Rolf whispered to her. "And you know I'm never gonna let it."

Amy glanced down the bed, looking at the last crimson traces of her virginity, carried from her body by some of Rolf's seed. "I'm glad we spent Valentine's Day together, Rolf."

"Me too, Amy."

Amy traced her finger across Rolf's chest, the pink nail dancing across copious traces of lipstick she had left behind during their lovemaking. "Rolf, thank you for needing a doctor two years ago."

"Thank you for being that doctor."

As Amy snuggled closer to him, Rolf asked, "Amy, have you heard the phrase, 'the other half of my soul?' I think you're it."

"I like that. If I'm half of someone's soul, Rolf, then I'm glad it's yours."

Rolf smiled, tracing his finger across Amy's lips. Taking her hand with his other hand, he added, "Amy... beautiful Amy, thank you. Thank you for being you."

Amy smiled as Rolf kissed her. "Good night, Rolf... my warrior of light."

"Good night, Amy... my salvation."

The two settled into a peaceful sleep, both of them thinking the same thing: Surely the Great Light had brought them together.

Little did they know, they were right.


End file.
